It's Only Soul 1985-1989 follows the pattern of JCI's It's Only series, offering a seemingly random collection of 20 hits from a given genre or style for a period of five years. These songs weren't necessarily the biggest hits of these five years, although there are a number of classics and smashes here. It may be hard to deduce exactly why these songs were chosen, but the end results are nevertheless quite entertaining. All of the songs are featured in their original hit versions, not remakes, which isn't always the case with midline collections. Furthermore, there a few cuts that aren't easy to find on other collections or even greatest-hits albums, which means it's interesting to collectors as well as casual fans. Most importantly, each volume captures the feeling of the era, even if it's missing several big hits, and that's what makes the series a nice introductory overview for curious listeners. Among the highlights on It's Only Soul 1985-1989 are Ready for the World's "Oh Sheila," Cameo's "Word Up," Roger's "I Want to Be Your Man," Neneh Cherry's "Buffalo Stance," Johnny Kemp's "Just Got Paid," Salt-N-Pepa's "Push It," Al B. Sure!'s "Nite and Day," Gregory Abbott's "Shake You Down," Aretha Franklin's "Who's Zoomin' Who," Karyn White's "Superwoman" and Billy Ocean's "Suddenly." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide